Car buffs, help needed

On Sat, Oct 31, 2009 at 1:22 AM, paul stenquist <pnstenquist at comcast.net> wrote:
> Thanks Ken. Some good material.
> Paul
> On Oct 31, 2009, at 1:06 AM, Ken Waller wrote:
>>> Several items come to mind :
>>>> + Twin turbo engines, replacing normally aspirated engines of higher
>> displacement, ala the Ford's Eco-boost engines - ie an Eco boost V 6
>> replacing a normally aspirated V 8, with almost constant Torque from say 2k
>> rpm to redline.
>>
Not really news, Nissan and Toyota started doing this years ago. The
Skyline GT-R and Supra TT along with the Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 (aka
Dodge Stealth Turbo) all had this in the early 90's, with the Toyota
and Dodge both being widely available. The big deal is Ford doing it
on mainstream American cars with turbo 4's replacing V6's where it had
previously been used as a replacement for V8's on high-end sports
coupes previously.
>> + Stability control , where the brakes are utilized to control vehicle
>> dynamics in a turn ie applying the inside rear wheel brake to help in an
>> understeer in a turn situation.
Once again, not really news, late 90's entrance into common use
>>>> + Electronic throttle where there is no mechanical linkage between the
>> accelerator pedal and the throttle body.
This is now getting popular, but it's been around since the 80's.
>>>> + Electronic steering, where there is no hydraulic assist.
New in common use.
>>>> + 'Active speed control' (not sure of the exact name - after a few Bombay
>> Sapphire gimlets), where the distance between you and the vehicle you're
>> following is maintained, and if you approach the vehicle in front, the
>> system applies the brakes.
this is nifty and new.
>>>> I might be able to think of more in the morning [:+}
>>>> BTW ceramic brakes are offered on several Porsche models and they
>> definitely last more than 200 miles. although the $8 to 10 K price premium
>> is way too stiff IMO.
>>>>>>>> Kenneth Waller
-Adam
--
M. Adam Maas
http://www.mawz.ca
Explorations of the City Around Us.